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Miami Dolphins veteran QB Chad Pennington has torn his ACL playing pickup basketball according to this tweet.

This is unfortunate news for Pennington who has had to overcome numerous season-ending shoulder injuries in his career. I am almost positive that Pennington won't ever be playing again in the NFL. He had announced a few months ago that he was hoping to play football again after his latest shoulder injury, but I highly doubt there is any chance of that anymore.

The fact that he was playing basketball is a strong reminder to other players who are working out on their own this offseason because they won't be covered by their teams. Pennington will likely have to pay for the surgery himself without any help from the Dolphins. It is unfortunate that it happened this way, but that was the risk he took when he decided to play basketball.

This injury could just force Pennington into becoming a coach, which he would be really good at. I would love to have him on the staff for the Dolphins, and I wouldn't be surprised if that happens. He seems to like Miami, so he would probably choose to stay and coach there.

Thanks for reading, and let me know what you think about this whole situation.

I found this video from when the Miami Dolphins still had Ted Ginn Jr, and I thought I would share it with you guys.

It is a really funny video with funny music to go along with it, so make sure you have your sound on.

I hope you guys enjoyed the video. My favorite part was at the 1:00 mark when Ginn drops the ball and everyone on the Dolphins sideline throws their arms up. If you don't know what I'm talking about you should definitely go back and watch right there.

By now I expect that most of you have heard about Miami Dolphins LB Channing Crowder's comments about Mel Kiper supposedly making him spend his money before he had it.

If you guys haven't heard, here is what he said when asked if he pays attention to the hype leading up to the NFL courtesy of Sports Radio Interviews:

"Yeah I watch it and all. Mel Kiper and all, he messed me over, he lied to me said I was top-20 had me go out and spend X amount of dollars and then owe the bank stuff. So I don't know the guys; they're guessing just like we guess; I can guess who the Dolphins are going to take too. But I look at it a little bit and hear the experts I guess they call them to hear what they got to say."

This is classic Channing Crowder stuff, and it got me thinking about some of Crowder's other funny interviews. So, I have added a few videos below of two of his previous interviews and a video of him getting decked because it is pretty funny. Enjoy!

This video is his interview after Le'Ron McClain spit in his face during a game. [Warning: Language]

The next interview is two videos of Crowder talking crap about the Jets after a victory against them. The actual interview isn't as funny as the ridiculous looking towel on his head. I apologize for the audio being out of sync with the video, but it is the best I could find.

Part 1

Part 2

This last video is Crowder being leveled by Saints RB Mike Bell. I know you're probably wondering why I would put this video up. Honestly, I just enjoy seeing Crowder get lit up every once in a while because he can be pretty annoying at times. Wait until the end of the video for the really good hit.

The Miami Dolphins are scheduled to work Ryan Mallett out today. Mallett then has a workout scheduled later this week with the Bengals, but I don't expect Cincinnati to actually draft him.

This is an important day to me, and I'm sure most of you know why. I believe Ryan Mallett is the real deal, and he is the player I want the Dolphins to draft the most.

A lot of people don't think Mallett is worth the 15th overall pick, and I don't understand why. He has the best arm of this draft class. His only real problem is his foot speed. Sure it helps to be able to move around in the pocket, but that is a pretty small problem to deal with when paired with his incredible passing ability.

Sure, there are other prospects that the Dolphins could use instead of Mallett, but I believe he is a rare talent and Miami would be foolish to pass him up. Players like Colin Kaepernick and Christian Ponder could end up being really good if the Dolphins drafted them, but I don't believe they can be nearly as good as Mallett can be.

I'm not going to say that he is the next Dan Marino because that didn't work out well last time, but he is a lot closer than Chad Henne.

I doubt we will hear what the Miami Dolphins think about Mallett until after the draft. If they do say anything it will probably just be them trying to mislead other teams.

That's all I've got for now. Thanks for reading, and let me know what you think.

The Miami Dolphins didn't do too well last season, but that hasn't stopped players on the team from beginning workouts on their own.

Players from the Dolphins, led by LT Jake Long and QB Chad Henne, will start their workouts this week, making Miami the first team with its players holding player-only workouts.

It is encouraging to hear that the players are taking the initiative and starting to prepare for next season. There isn't expected to be a lot of player participation because some agents have advised their players not to participate. Here is a quote from Drew Rosenhaus, who is a well-known sports agent. The quote is courtesy of Omar Kelly of the Sun Sentinel.

"If a guy works out right now and suffers an injury, he's not covered by his NFL contract during this lockout. So if you get injured, the team doesn't have to pay your salary next year. It's not a sanctioned activity, so if a guy goes out there and blows his knee, the team can say they've decided not to pay your contract this year. It's very risky."

It's too bad that the contracts work out that way, but that's how it goes. It is still good to know that some Dolphins players are committed to winning and are willing to risk injuries.

I was under the impression earlier this year that Chad Henne didn't really care if Miami won or not. His involvement in learning the offense and then teaching it to others is a good sign, and I was impressed before. My problem now is that Jake Long is leading the workouts with help from Henne. I would rather it be the other way around with Henne leading and Long helping. Henne needs to step into a leadership role if he ever wants to be a successful QB.

What I'm saying about Henne may sound ridiculous to some of you guys, but having a quarterback who isn't a good leader is like having a fast car without wheels. Leadership at QB is crucial, and Henne doesn't really seem to be much of a leader.

Anyways, enough with the Henne talk. It is good to see that some players with the Miami Dolphins are committed enough to work out on their own. Hopefully more will come, and I will let you guys know if I hear anything new about it.

Thanks for reading, and please be sure to leave a comment with your reactions.

Also, I apologize for not posting yesterday or the day before, but I was enjoying the last bit of my vacation.

Free Agent WR Mike Sims-Walker expressed interest in coming to play for the Dolphins in Miami with this tweet.

Sims-Walker had 562 receiving yards and 7 touchdowns. He is a very fast receiver, and the Dolphins are in need of a receiver with his speed. They lacked a burner who could stretch the field last season, and Sims-Walker could be just the answer.

Imagine how incredible our receiving corps could be if we brought him in. We would have Brandon Marshall, Mike Sims-Walker, and Davone Bess all in at the same time. It would be the Dolphins version of the big three. Whatever quarterback Miami has under center would have a much easier job with those three catching his passes.

All of this doesn't really matter much if there isn't an NFL season, though, because Sims-Walker is a free agent and can't do anything until a new CBA is reached.

Thanks for reading, and I will keep you posted if anything else comes up.

News has come out that Bill Parcells really is gone from the Miami Dolphins and that he will be taping a draft special for ESPN.

This is not one of my conspiracy posts. I believe that he really is gone and that Jeff Ireland and Tony Sparano really are in charge now, and I think they will be able to do well. Before, they weren't able to make their own decisions for an entire year. Now, they can start at the draft and build the team the way they want to build it.

I expect that Parcells still talks to Dolphins Owner Stephen Ross, but I don't think he has any more influence on the decisions that the team makes. I could be wrong, but I just get the feeling that we are finally free of him.

Now we are going to see what Ireland and Sparano can do. Those two have been operating under Parcells' shadow, and now it is time for them to show what they are capable of. Hopefully they are capable of something better than what we have seen these past two seasons.

Thanks for reading, and let me know what you think with a comment.

I want to apologize again for the short posts, but I am on vacation and don't have time for anything too long.

I hope this never happens for the Miami Dolphins, but it is possible so I have to consider the possibility.

A few days ago the Miami Herald suggested Carson Palmer as a possible quarterback replacement for Chad Henne and the Dolphins next season.

My question to you guys is who would you rather: Chad Henne or Carson Palmer for the Miami Dolphins?

I am hoping that it never comes down to this, but it is possible so I want to know who you guys would rather see if these two were the only options.

I like to avoid putting my opinion in the post of a "You Tell Me," but I have to say this. I think it would be a huge mistake to get Carson Palmer. Palmer is fading and would only be a short-term replacement like Chad Pennington.

At least with Chad Henne he has time to improve and develop. Palmer wouldn't get any better. He would just grow older, and that's not what we want. I'm tired of these quick fixes to a major problem. Either Miami stays committed to Henne or they find another young quarterback to develop. Bringing in an old veteran won't help at all.

Now let me know what you think with your comment below. Thanks for reading, and I look forward to a good debate.

I just wanted to let you guys know about a live Ustream that the NFL Players Association will be holding at 12 noon today.

The Ustream will include former NFL players like Floyd Little, Cornelius Bennett, and others. I have not been told exactly what the players will be talking about, but I would guess they will be discussing rule changes and the lockout.

I think we can all agree that Stephen Ross doesn't always make the best decisions when it comes to the Miami Dolphins. So, it comes as a surprise to me that he has actually done something smart that could help his football team.

Here is what Ross had to say, courtesy of Armando Salguero, about job security for Tony Sparano, Jeff Ireland, and other coaching personnel for Miami:

"We talk about it all the time. If not, you go and sign old players and all big names and hope they have one year left. I think we have a very young squad, one of the youngest in the league. We're building it from the ground up and I think the whole idea when I first bought the team is we want to be consistent, playing in the playoffs year in and year out where people can expect a good, exciting product on the field"

Ross may not be the greatest owner in the world, but I am glad that he is giving Sparano and Ireland a vote of confidence. It is important for a coach to know that he has time to put together a winning team. You can't build a Super Bowl team in just one year.

I agree with what Ross is saying about not adding old players to see if they have one more year left in them. It is good that he is willing to be patient and look towards the future.

This isn't the first time that Stephen Ross has tried to make Sparano and Ireland feel like they have some more job security after the Jim Harbaugh debacle, but I actually believe him this time.

We may not have the greatest football-minded owner, but I do believe Ireland and Sparano know what they are doing. Ross' reassuring the two of their job security allows them to build a good team over time without having to worry about being fired.

Hopefully Ross really does mean what he is saying and isn't just trying to make his "product" look good so people will pay to watch it.

I understand that this is probably a lost cause, but I figured it would be worth a try anyway.

Voting for the cover athlete of Madden 12 has just begun, and Jake Long is the player representing the Miami Dolphins.

I know that an offensive lineman has never been on the cover of Madden before, but that could change. Long is arguably the best left tackle in the NFL, and he deserves to win this honor despite the Dolphins inability to do much this season.

If you need any more incentive to go and vote for him, just know that his first round matchup is against Mark Sanchez. So, if you vote for Long you are actually sticking it to the Jets. Each vote is one step closer to eliminating the Jets nose-picking crybaby that they have for a quarterback. Here is the link so you guys can vote now:http://espn.go.com/sportsnation/feature/madden2012cover

Thank you guys for reading. If you vote for Long please be sure to leave a comment so I can get an estimate of how many people did.

I am on vacation right now, so it is possible that I may not post during some days. I would like to apologize in advance for any of those posts that I miss.

Today's "You Tell Me" is going to be a good one. I am very excited to see what you guys want the Miami Dolphins to do.

What I want to know is do you think the Miami Dolphins should trade down from the 15th overall pick in the NFL Draft to a late first or early second round pick, trade up to a top 8 pick, or stay where they are at 15?

I will let you guys give your answers, and expect me to be in on the conversation a good bit. All three options are possible and have their own benefits, so I believe that this will be an extremely good debate.

According to this tweet by @incarceratedbob, the Miami Dolphins and the New England Patriots have been the most aggressive in the past two days in trying to move up in the draft.

The Dolphins have scheduled a workout with Blaine Gabbert, so we likely could see them make a push to pick him or Cam Newton.

This is surprising news to a lot of us because we were expecting Miami to want to trade down in the draft instead of trading up to the top 8 range.

A trade up could mean trading future draft picks, which I believe is a huge mistake and an unnecessary risk. Hopefully the Dolphins don't end up doing this, but it is very possible so don't be surprised if it happens.

Let me know what you guys think. I will be traveling, but I will keep you posted if something comes up whenever possible.

The idea of bringing Moss to Miami was proposed by Omar Kelly of the Sun Sentinel, and I want to know if you guys would like or dislike the idea of Moss with the Dolphins.

Kelly talked about how Miami needs a receiver who is capable of stretching the field, and he proposed Moss as potential fit for that spot. I don't know if Moss is exactly the type of receiver that the Dolphins are looking for to stretch the field, though. He is really fast, but he isn't lightning fast like the player Miami should get.

Also, Moss has had a great career so far in the NFL, but it seems like he is starting to fade. For that reason, I don't want Miami to go after him. His numbers last year were pathetic, and they sure don't merit the amount of money he is reportedly looking for ($6 million or more).

Moss also has expressed a lot of love for the New England Patriots, so I doubt that he will even want to come to Miami.

Let me know what you guys think. I want to hear whether you would like the Miami Dolphins to add Randy Moss or not. Thanks for reading.

Here is a highlight video of the Miami Dolphins Week 5 victory over the New York Jets during the 2009-2010 season.

I thought you guys would enjoy this video, because after that win things were looking good for the Dolphins. There was a lot of hope in Chad Henne and the Wildcat was still going strong.

I hope you guys enjoy the video:

One other thing I enjoyed about this video was Ted Ginn's TD catch. He broke away from his defenders and caught the ball. That was a rarity for Ginn with Miami, so I thought you guys would enjoy watching it.

Thanks for watching. I apologize to anyone who doesn't want to watch videos, but it is the offseason and there isn't anything to write about.

I am glad to hear that the Dolphins are working Kaepernick out, because I believe they should get another quarterback to compete with Henne for the starting job. I would rather that quarterback be Ryan Mallett, but this could end up working better for Miami because they could trade down for more picks and still get Kaepernick.

Kaepernick, who stands almost as tall as Mallett at 6-6, is a very fast quarterback to go along with his passing skills. He ran for 59 touchdowns and threw for 82 in four years as a starter for Nevada. During his senior year he ran for 20 touchdowns while throwing for 21, which puts him with Tim Tebow and Cam Newton as quarterbacks that have thrown for 20 touchdowns and run for 20 in the same year.

Kaepernick could end up being really good for the Miami Dolphins, and I can see them going after him. He threw the fastest ball at the NFL Combine this year at 59 mph(one faster than Mallett's 58), but I expect Jeff Ireland to be very partial towards Kaepernick more because of his foot speed than his passing speed. Ireland wants speed, so give the man what he wants.

Another reason I think Miami will like Kaepernick a lot is the fact that he started for four years in college. Bill Parcells always wanted the quarterbacks he drafted to be experienced seniors, and Kaepernick more than fits that requirement because of how much he has played.

I know that Parcells isn't supposed to be working for the Dolphins anymore, but I can guarantee you guys that he is still helping a good bit in the draft. I wrote posts on his involvement before, and Stephen Ross is too dependent on him to not take his advice on QBs.

That is all I have for today. Let me know what you think about Kaepernick, Mallet, Parcells, or whoever else. Thanks for reading.

So you all know that I am a huge Ryan Mallett supporter. I believe he can lead the Miami Dolphins to a Super Bowl if they would just take a chance on him.

I urge any of you guys who think the same way that I do to write letters to Tony Sparano, Jeff Ireland, or Stephen Ross. They need to know that we want them to take Mallett, and a letter is a good way to tell them.

Anyway, I wanted to show you guys this incredible argument that I found in a Sun Sentinel blog post written by Mike Berardino. Mike didn't actually write it, though. It was written by a Joe W. Here is the segment written by Joe, and I encourage you guys to go to the actual post that I have linked in this paragraph to support Joe.

"I did a little QB research project today that I thought I'd share. Here’s what I did:

1.) I took the top 10 NFL QB's for each year for the past 5 years (2010-2006) based on QB Rating.

2.) I then determined which players appeared in the top 10 the most times. There were 8 QB's that showed up 3 or more times in the past 5 years that are still playing football (Kurt Warner retired).

3.) I then went back and researched what their final 2 years of college stats were.

4.) I compared those stats to the current 2011 college crop of QB prospects to try and get an idea of what prospects compare favorably, i.e. what guys have the best chance of being the future greats of the NFL based on their last 2 years of college production.

Results: The 8 QB's that have been in the Top 10 the most for the past 5 years averaged the following in their final 2 years of college: Comp: 64.5% Yards: 6,513 Y/A: 8.00 yards per attempt TD's: 50 total TD's the final 2 years of college TD/Int Ratio of 2.47.

There was one player that came close to all these averages: Andy Dalton: 64%, 5600 yds, 50 TD's 3.57 TD/Int ratio. He's also started the most games out of all the QB's (49), which I believe has also been proven to be correlated to NFL success.

The only other guy that compares favorably is Ryan Mallett (7500 yds, 62 TD's, 3.26 TD/Int ratio), but his completion % (60.3%) was lower than the average.

However, when looking at the Top 8 QB's the ones that had the lower completion % in the final 2 years of college, Peyton Manning (62%), Drew Brees (61%), also had the top total TD's, 57 and 51 respectively. Guys like Ben Roethlisberger and Tony Romo had high completion % (66%, 65%, respectively) and total TD's (59 TD, 55 TD, respectively), but they also didn't play in a major Division 1 conference like Manning/Brees and the others.

When looking at Mallett's JR/SR stats compared to the other top 8 NFL QB's three things stand out:

1.) His 62 total TD's the past 2 years in college are better than any of the Top 8 QB's. The most JR/SR total TD’s belonged to Big Ben (59 TD's), but again, he didn't play in a big time conference. The number two player was Peyton Manning with 57. And since he played in the SEC, the production of Mallett is all the more impressive.

2.) Mallett's 9.21 YPA number is greater than any of the Top 8 NFL QB's. This again reinforces what I saw on film that Mallett is prone to push the ball downfield and create big plays vs. the standard dink and dunk. However, he's admitted that mentality is what caused his poor JR completion numbers (56%) and he focused on that in his senior year. That focus helped his completion jump to 65% while his Yards per Attempt also increased from 9.0 to 9.4. Again, impressive.

3.) Mallett's 7500 passing yds were only exceeded by Big Ben (7725) and Drew Brees (7577), but since Big Ben played in the MAC his production gets discounted a bit.

So, in summary on Mallett, in his final 2 years of college he threw for more TD's, more yards and had a higher yards per attempt than any of the top 10 QB's currently playing in the NFL. I’d say that's about as favorable comparison as you're going to get. It's equally impressive that he produced these numbers in the SEC, the toughest conference in college football, and not some lesser conference (TCU-Mountain West Conference), which is what you generally find with many other college QB's who have put up gaudy stats.

One final note, if Cam Newton played 2 years he might have been at the beginning of this report. His 66% completion %, 30 TD's, 10.2 yards per attempt and 4.3 TD/Int ratio were all close to the top of the 2010 stats. However, the question will always be if he was a one year wonder or could have sustained this level of play for another year.

P.S. – For all the talk of mobility and 40 times with QB's, in 2010 Cam Newton was sacked 23 times and Mallett, all 5.4 in the 40, was only sacked 25 times against the same competition."

I want to know if you guys would like the Miami Dolphins to take a risk with the 15th overall pick in the NFL Draft and select a quarterback, or do you want them to stick with Chad Henne as a safer option?

The lockout throws a wrench in the Dolphins plans, and because of it, whatever quarterback Miami drafted wouldn't get a lot of time to practice with the team before the season starts.

Chad Henne, on the other hand, knows the offense pretty well and will be teaching it to the rest of the team. The problem is that he has just come off of a terrible season, and I believe the Dolphins would have been better off if they had drafted a rookie quarterback when there wasn't a lockout.

So, let me know what you guys think. Thanks for reading, and I hope you are enjoying your Sunday.

So, by now I expect that you guys have heard about the NFL Players Association decertifying, the NFL locking the players out, and the legal battle that is to ensue.

While this news stinks for all NFL fans, it will be even worse for fans of certain teams like the Miami Dolphins.

I am no expert on all of the legal stuff, but I have heard that the battle in court could last as long as six months. Six months from today would be September 12th, and the NFL season is scheduled to start September 8th. So, if the court battle between the NFL and NFLPA lasts anywhere as long as expected, then there could be some major problems for some teams.

Imagine an NFL season with no OTAs, training camps, or preseason. Some of you may not think that's a big deal, but it is a huge deal for teams with a new coach and new offenses to teach their players.

Enter the Miami Dolphins. The Dolphins have a new offensive coordinator who has to teach his players a new offense, they have huge questions at quarterback, and we don't even know who our starting running back is.

This is all bad news for Miami, because the longer the battle between the NFL and NFLPA lasts, the less time the Dolphins get to prepare for the season.

The one bright spot is that Chad Henne was able to learn the new offense. I am very glad that he was motivated enough to take the initiative and prepare for a potential lockout. I just hope he will be able to successfully teach the offense to the rest of the team. Because of this whole mess, I do think it will be smart to start Henne for, at least, the beginning of the season.

I am NOT on the Chad Henne bandwagon, though. I just think he will be the best option to start off the season because of the lockout. If he ends up doing really well and lives up to the hype that surrounded him at the beginning of last year, then more power to him, but I just don't see it happening.

I am still a huge Ryan Mallett supporter. I will be a fan of his as long as he doesn't go to a team like the Jets or Patriots, and when he ends up being extremely successful in the NFL, you guys can flood my inbox with praise. I promise I won't mind it at all. My email address is paul@dolphinshout.com, so you should add that to your contacts for when you need to send me praise.

Thanks for reading, and let me know what you think about the lockout, Henne, or Mallett with a comment. I look forward to seeing what you guys think. You may have also noticed that I didn't put up a post yesterday, and I apologize to anyone who was expecting it, but I was hoping to keep my post about the trifecta compared to the bifecta up on the top of the blog because I wanted to keep the conversation going.

﻿﻿I have a great Miami Dolphins debate that I think you guys will really enjoy. I won't take credit for coming up with the idea, though. Riverdog brought it to me.﻿

With or Without?

﻿

﻿Anyways, I want to know if you guys think the Trifecta of the past three years (Parcells, Sparano, and Ireland) did a better job than what just Sparano and Ireland will be able to do by themselves this year.

Basically, do you trust the trifecta with Bill Parcells or just the "bifecta" without Parcells?

Be sure to take everything into account: their draft history, their free agent signings, and overall team performance.

﻿

The trifecta might have messed up on players like Pat White and Chad Henne, but they also brought in great players like Cameron Wake, Brandon Marshall, and Vontae Davis.

I am, personally, more confident in just Tony Sparano and Jeff Ireland. The problem with Bill Parcells was that he was like an old man set in his ways that rarely changed up what he did. He had a certain criteria that players would have to meet before he considered signing or drafting them, and I don't really agree with that. Sure, you don't want to sign a 150 pound offensive lineman, but it isn't smart to pass up on a really good prospect because he is a couple inches shorter or 10 to 20 pounds lighter than what you want.

Now, I want to know what you guys think. If the discussion gets good, then I won't post anything tomorrow to keep it at the top.

The Miami Dolphins are likely going to need to sign, draft, or trade for at least one running back this offseason. Ricky Williams is all but gone, and Ronnie Brown could also be gone.

Because of that Miami will need a new running back. There have been a lot of names thrown around for the job, and let me add another name to the list courtesy of Ben Volin of the Palm Beach Post:

Darren Sproles.

Sproles is a small, quick back that could be able to split carries with another running back. He is also a great receiving back who has had more receiving yards than rushing yards in the past three seasons. He averaged 5.3 yards per carry when running the ball last year and 8.8 yards per reception.

Sproles could add a lot to the Dolphins. He is a great threat running the ball, and he adds another dimension as a receiving threat. The Dolphins could keep him and Ronnie Brown, and their two running styles would complement each other very well.

Sproles is very young at only 27 years old, so he has a lot of years left in him.

He is also a great kick returner, which is something Miami lacked last year. So, his value would be amplified even more if the Dolphins got him.

I want to know what you guys think. Would you like the Miami Dolphins to go after Sproles? Let me know with your comments.

Today I would like to put a thought by you guys that we have just been assuming won't happen, but could very easily happen:

Why don't the Miami Dolphins just keep Ronnie Brown?

I know he didn't have the best season last year, but a big reason for that was the Dolphins offensive line's inability to run block. If Miami had a better offensive line, then I am confident Ronnie would have been a lot more successful.

I also know that Ronnie doesn't really have breakaway speed, but he is still a very manageable running back. The Dolphins could just draft a fast running back late in the draft to compliment Brown. Having Brown and a speed back would solve Miami's running back problems, and it would keep them from having to draft Mark Ingram with their first pick.

Everyone is just assuming that Brown is leaving the Dolphins this offseason, and that might not be the case. Brown has said that he would love to stay in Miami, so why not keep him? He is still a very good running back.

So, I want to know whether you guys would be opposed to bringing back. His contract probably wouldn't be very high, which would be another plus.

﻿During an interview at ESPN The Weekend, current Bengals WR Chad Ochocinco expressed interest in the Miami Dolphins. The following quote from that interview, courtesy of Steve Svekis of the Sun Sentinel, is Ochocinco showing some love towards the Dolphins in a way that only he can:

"Speaking of the Dolphins, like, I can say this. The Dolphins have always been my team since I've grown up. Anytime I play Madden, I play with the Dolphins. I mean, everything, the Heat, the Marlins, you know, the Panthers. I've been a Florida guy all my life. I love Cincinnati, it's been good to me, I would like to win, I want things to turn around. I'm not in control of the situation, as you can see, my quarterback is fed up. But we'll see what happens."

I believe that is Ochocinco's way of saying that he wants to play for Miami. I can't be positive, but if he says that he loves playing as the Dolphins in Madden and is a "Florida guy," then I would guess that is his way of asking to go play for them.

He then abruptly switches topics to the Bengals in a pretty funny way. A player like Ochocinco is very fun to listen to because you never know what he is going to say, and I have to say that I enjoyed this quote a lot.

But now, to the thought of him actually coming to play for Miami.

Is he immature? Yes, but is he also very talented? Yes. He could help the Dolphins out, but is it worth bringing him to Florida with his extra baggage?

Some could argue we already have enough trouble with Brandon Marshall, and while I honestly believe that Brandon isn't the diva that everyone makes him out to be, I do agree that the two of them together could be trouble. Marshall and Ochocinco together would be very hard to match up against, especially if you add Davone Bess and Brian Hartline into the mix, but I don't believe it is worth having two "divas" on the same team.

It didn't work in Cincinnati, so why would it work in Miami? Granted, I don't think Marshall is nearly as much of a "diva" as Terrell Owens, but he did make a pretty rough exit in Denver.

I want to know what you guys think. Would you like the Miami Dolphins to bring in Chad Ochocinco to compliment Marshall, Bess, and Hartline?

I would rather they pass up on Ocho and look to get a speedy receiver in the draft, but that is just what I want. Let me know your thoughts with a comment.

Also, one more thing about Ochocinco: he rambles almost as much as Tony Sparano during an interview, and that's saying something.

The Miami Dolphins have re-signed Guard Richie Incognito to a three-year contract according to Omar Kelly of the Sun Sentinel. The full details of the contract haven't been announced, but I don't expect the deal to be for any huge amount of money.

This is great news for Dolphins fans because there were questions about Miami's interior offensive line next year, and keeping Incognito will allow us to worry a little bit less about those questions.

I believe that Incognito has been a guard for his whole NFL career, but I am not positive. Despite his past, though, there is actually a good possibility that he will be starting at center when the season rolls around. You guys may remember him playing a little bit at center later in the season. He did surprisingly well for just being an emergency fill-in, and because of how well he did, Miami could try and make him their permanent center.

Anything can happen between now and the beginning of the season, though, which is why nobody is really certain where Incognito will be playing on the line.

My hope is that he does play center and that Miami looks to strengthen the guard spot in the draft. I think that he can do really well, and he seems to think so too. Here is what he said about being a center to the Sun Sentinel:

"It feels like home. It's a position that plays to my strengths. I'm a strong guy in a short area. That's why there’s a comfort level there for me."

Sounds good enough to me. It is important for a player to be comfortable with his position, and Richie seems to like the thought of playing at center.

Now we just have to find out whom he will be snapping the ball to.

Thanks for reading, and let me know what you guys think about re-signing Incognito.

In this post I will be telling you guys what I think the Miami Dolphins will end up doing in the first few rounds of the draft, and I will follow it with what I want them to do. I am hoping to start some discussion, so don't be shy and please comment with your thoughts after you have read this.

Let me start this off by saying that I think it would be a huge mistake if the Dolphins drafted Alabama RB Mark Ingram with their 15th overall pick. I know that Ingram will be a really good running back and I have heard the Emmitt Smith comparisons, but Miami needs to focus on getting a franchise quarterback instead. There are free agent running backs that should be able to fill in well enough.

But what do I think the Dolphins will do in the draft?

I am betting that they will trade down. Not having a second round pick is a problem, and because of that I expect Miami to trade their 15th overall pick for a later first round pick and a second rounder just like last year. My guess is that they will trade with a team like Seattle, who is stuck with the 25th overall pick because they were in a really bad division and made the playoffs with a losing record.

With the later first pick, I expect the Dolphins to take Ingram if he is on the board, but he likely won't be so I expect them to take the best available QB. Ryan Mallett would probably be their first choice, but I don't think he will be available either because I think Seattle will take him instead.

That leaves Miami to decide between either Jake Locker or Christian Ponder.

This is an extremely hard pick to predict, because Locker is really athletic and can make some really good throws, but he is still an inconsistent passer. Ponder had an extremely good NFL Combine, and many analysts are predicting him to be taken late first round. He also struggles with his touch on longer passes, but he is very accurate on shorter range passes.

I believe that the Dolphins would take Ponder here, but this one could easily go either way.

With the second round pick, I expect the Dolphins to take an offensive lineman. I will just assume that their pick will be Seattle's second round pick at 25. At that point, a lot of the very best offensive linemen prospects will be gone, but two guards that I think would be available are Orlando Franklin of Miami and Marcus Cannon of TCU. Both are really, really good run blockers, and their pass blocking is almost as good.

I see Franklin as the better guard prospect, though, and I think the Dolphins will get him with their pick. In the case that he has already been taken I would expect the Dolphins to take Cannon. Both players would fill a huge need on Miami's interior line and would help to improve last year's terrible run blocking.

That is what I think Miami will end up doing. What I actually want them to do is another thing. I would personally rather that they take Arkansas QB Ryan Mallett with the 15th pick and then worry about the O-line with later picks.

I promise every single one of you that Mallett is the best QB in the draft, and he will be the most successful QB of all of this year's prospects as long as he doesn't go to a team like the Raiders. He has the arm, the passion, and the intensity that all great quarterbacks have. He has some character questions, but it will be worth taking a risk on those questions because of how good of a passer he is.

On a little side note, I think Miami could potentially be halfway set at running back with Kory Sheets. You guys may have forgotten about Sheets(I did until Riverdog reminded me), but he is actually a very good running back who injured his Achilles tendon during Miami's preseason last year.. Sheets is very fast and has great hands, and he could end up doing really well next year if the Dolphins keep him.

That is all I have for now. Thanks for reading, and let me know what you think about my predictions. I would like to know if you guys agree or disagree with me.

As of this time, I have been hearing the two sides seem to be a little more serious, mostly due to a ruling by Judge Doty in Minnesota. "Judge Doty" sounds like another TV show to me, but anyway, he ruled that the TV contract for this coming year will not go to the owners. "So what?" you may ask. Well, the money the owners were to get from that contract will not be able to be used to extend the lockout if there is one with TV revenues. In other words, the owners must shoulder the burden of no money coming in and pay the price from a lockout from their own pockets. They can afford to do that if they would like, but taking that money away makes things more interesting.

For one thing, this is the same Judge Doty that will oversee a law suit if the players decide to bring a suit. He is the same Judge that allowed free agency 20 years ago, and now he has blocked the TV revenues from being used by the owners(which they were counting on). So, the owners track record with Judge Doty is not good.

The CBA getting signed is all about leverage, and the owners are losing that leverage, and that leverage is not so much on the money side because, as I said, they can afford the lockout. What they can't afford is not having the leverage to force the union to cave in to what they want. Because of Judge Doty and the threat of a law suit from the union(which they always lose in Judge Doty court room) the owners are now in a bad spot.

The NFL owners committee is sitting in on the talks this morning, and they are having an owners meeting at 3 eastern this afternoon. From what I know, that is a first since the NFL and the NFLPA have began these meeting 8 days ago. There is also talk floating around about extending the CBA deadline past Thursday night(currently just a rumor).

That is where things stand right now from my vantage point.

For us the FANS, all of this is good news. In the interest of starting a conversation, what side do you guys stand on? The Players or the Owners?

I know that this will touch a sore spot for a lot of Miami Dolphins fans, and that is a big part of the reason why I am putting it up here.

I know almost every Dolphins fan has some sort of opinion of Jason Taylor, whether it is good or bad, and I want to know if you guys would like for him to come back to Miami to either retire or play another year.

Taylor was a Dolphin for 12 seasons, but many people ignore the time he spent in Miami because of the single season he played with the Jets. I will admit that I didn't like the move either, but I understand why he did what he did, and we shouldn't fault him for doing what he did.

The Jets were the only team that showed him any interest at all, so it makes sense that he joined them. Add the fact that they had just come off of an appearance in the AFC Championship game, and it was a pretty easy decision for a veteran player who wanted to start winning immediately.

In New York, Taylor played very well despite only starting five games. His numbers weren't up to where they were during most of his career with the Dolphins, but they were still very good for the amount of playing time he was given.

What I want to know is: should the Dolphins try to sign Taylor and bring him back to Miami?

If they brought him back he would help strengthen the defensive line. As much as some of you guys hate him, he is still a great football player that can make big contributions on the field. I would love to see him and Cameron Wake lining up on opposite sides of the D-line every once in a while and bring the pressure.

At the very least, Miami could do what they did with Zach Thomas and sign Taylor to a one-day deal so he could, at the very least, retire a Dolphin.

Yes, he went to the Jets, but he didn't have a choice. It was either New York or retire. What would you have done if you wanted to continue playing in the NFL?

Now, I want to know what you guys think. Should Miami sign Taylor to any type of deal at all? I look forward to hear your opinions, because I know this is a touchy topic for a lot of Dolphins fans.

Ryan Mallet and Jake Locker both did really well at the NFL Combine, and I wanted to give you guys a little overview of how they did. I hope you guys enjoy reading this, and please remember to comment with your opinions after reading.

Mallett, in my opinion, was by far the best passer at the combine. He made all of the throws and had the strongest arm of all of the QB hopefuls. I don't understand why he is only considered the third best prospect behind Blaine Gabbert and Cam Newton.

He has some character questions, and that should be taken into consideration, but even with those problems I still consider him to be the top quarterback in the draft. He can make more throws than anyone else, and he is the type of player that teammates will rally behind and fight for.

Locker wasn't as good as Mallett, but he did help his stock because he made a lot of tough throws, as well. Locker has been falling on almost everybody's draft radar these past few months, so it was important for him to show up and perform well.

Locker did have some trouble with his shorter throws, which was odd because he did really well on the tougher, deeper throws. He had been having accuracy questions before the combine, and his shorter throws will only add more questions about his accuracy.

All in all, though, Locker improved his draft stock at the combine. He showed that he can throw with the best of this year's prospects, especially later in the drills when he started making the tough throws, and he definitely showed up with a 4.59 40-time. We already knew he was fast, so the 40 yard dash didn't push up his stock, but it is nice to have a faster quarterback.

I, personally, would love for the Dolphins to get Mallett. I believe he is the best QB prospect in this year's draft and that he will turn into one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. He can already make any throw that he will ever need to make in the NFL, and he is an intense leader that will always come ready to play.

So you heard it here, folks. Ryan Mallett will do better than Cam Newton, Blaine Gabbert, Jake Locker, and any other QB prospect in this draft.

Thanks for reading, now let me know who you would like Miami to draft and who you think the best QB in this year's draft is.

Yesterday, Chad Henne mentioned to David Neal of the Miami Herald about meetings that he and Offensive Coordinator Brian Daboll had to discuss the new offense. Here is what Henne had to say:

"I've been meeting with him for the last month now. I feel pretty comfortable with what he’s teaching and what the offense is going to be about just in case - who knows what’s going to happen this Thursday? - that I can pass it on to the guys and help the guys out."

Henne apparently had no idea that he was breaking any rules, but he was. Players are not allowed to have any type of organized workout, practice, or meeting of any kind before the start of offseason activities like OTAs.

This can only be bad news for the Dolphins. It means that Henne will likely be teaching the rest of the team Miami's new offense when the CBA expires, and it means that the NFL could possibly penalize either the Dolphins organization or specific people in the organization such as Head Coach Tony Sparano, Daboll, or Henne.

While I wouldn't really like the Dolphins to fine anyone on the team, that type of penalty would be much better than some of the other penalties that the NFL could hit Miami with. A fine would be much better than, say, taking away one or more draft picks.

I am not quite sure how strict the NFL will be in this case because Henne obviously had no idea he was breaking any rules. But, if the NFL is anywhere near as harsh towards teams as they were to the players for dangerous tackles this season, then I wouldn't be surprised if they take away draft picks.

I also am not going to come out and say that this is why the Dolphins shouldn't rely on Henne, because I didn't expect him to do something like this. I actually applaud his efforts to learn the offense and to be ready to teach the team how to run it as well. He is showing a lot more leadership than I would have ever thought him capable of, and I respect him more for what he is trying to do.

I still don't think he should be the starter next year, but it is encouraging to hear him already preparing for next season. I wish he could come out next year and have a breakout season, but I don't see how that can happen after these past two seasons of mediocrity (at best).

Let me know what you guys think about this whole situation. Just when you thought I was done talking about Henne, this comes up.

Thanks for reading, and if you would like to argue about starting or benching Henne next year, I encourage you to go here:Chad Henne Debate